The Federal Government wants to introduce new laws to protect the rights of pregnant women at work and provide more flexibility with parental leave.

Under the proposal, pregnant women would be able to transfer to a "safe" job if one is available.

Workplace Relations Minister Bill Shorten says the measure would be available to women even if they have been with their employer for less than a year.

"There's a loophole which says if you've worked for an employer for less than 12 months, there's no requirement for you to be provided with a safe job or in fact for a safe job to be sought after," he said.

"I can't see this one being controversial at all."

Mr Shorten says the laws would also ensure pregnant women who are forced to take special maternity leave because they are ill are not penalised by having their parental leave reduced.

He also wants to extend unpaid parental leave from three to eight weeks, and allow both parents to take their leave at the same time.

The proposals are part of the Government's flagged workplace reforms, and come after the Government announced it would seek to increase the number of employees who can ask for flexible working arrangements.

The Government is also seeking to give more protection to workers subject to roster and shift changes at very late notice.

The Government is hoping that switching the focus to the workplace will put the Opposition under some pressure.

"Everybody supports making life easier for everybody, especially for those people in our community that bear the next generation. So clearly those sorts of practices are in the national interest," he told ABC News 24.

"[But] the devil is always in the detail.

"So we will reserve our judgment until we've been able to digest this.

"Those urgent matters that the Fair Work Act review panel said needed changing seem to be left behind in favour of this thought bubble, which strikes me as being Labor trying to play catch-up with Tony Abbott's ground-breaking paid parental leave scheme."